EU and U.S. unite to intensify sanctions against Russia
The European Union's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio agreed on the need to maintain "maximum pressure on Moscow to move towards a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine," Bloomberg reports.
The agency cites an EU representative who witnessed the phone conversation between Kallas and Rubio.
Kallas wants to use economic power against Russia
Kallas and Rubio also discussed strengthening EU-U.S. cooperation, joint foreign policy priorities, and challenges posed by China, said the representative, who requested anonymity.
The EU's chief diplomat aims to leverage economic power against Russia. Earlier in an interview with Bloomberg, Kallas discussed the option of using "joint EU debt to finance the heavy spending required to bolster its defences against Russia."
"We have to put the political, economic pressure on Russia. We have a lot of economic might on our side," she said.
They want to end the war through sanctions
After taking office as Secretary of State, Rubio declared that ending the war between Russia and Ukraine would become official U.S. policy during Donald Trump's presidency. He promised to make every effort in this direction but emphasized that such conflicts are not resolved through loud public declarations and require "diplomatic hard work," which he is ready to undertake.
At the same time, Rubio noted that sanctions, as well as their lifting, can play a significant role in negotiations to end the war. He described the restrictions imposed on Russia as "levers" through which the U.S. could help achieve peace.
Kallas also noted that EU sanctions against Russia will not be lifted until negotiations concerning the Russian-Ukrainian conflict are concluded.
"Whatever the negotiations then we will be in a much weaker position" if sanctions are lifted prematurely, Kallas stressed. She noted that such action would also not be in the interest of the U.S. On the occasion of the third anniversary of the onset of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU is preparing a 16th package of sanctions against Russia.
It will include restrictions on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and aluminium supplies to the European market, exclusion of new Russian banks from the SWIFT international payment system, and blacklisting dozens of ships from Russia's "shadow fleet."
Earlier, Trump threatened to intensify sanctions against Moscow, including a total embargo on Russian exports, if Russian President Vladimir Putin does not end the war.
According to him, Washington "will have no choice but to impose high levels of tariffs, taxes and sanctions on everything" Russia sells to the U.S. and other countries if Putin doesn't quickly engage in negotiations.
"Let’s get this war, which never would have started if I were President, over with! We can do it the easy way, or the hard way — and the easy way is always better," Trump said.
